Saturday made it six weeks since left tackle Jared Gaither suffered back spasms in the Chargers weight room.

Six weeks without practicing. Six weeks of no clarity for when he'll return.

Six weeks later, the Chargers haven't given up hope he will.

Coach Norv Turner said the team is not considering to place Gaither on season-ending injured reserve at this time.

"I think that's way premature," Turner said. "Obviously, we have a guy we know it's been, what, (six) weeks now, that anything is a possibility. But I think that's premature."

The Chargers will be without Gaither for Monday night's season opener against the Raiders, and thus far, there is no reason to expect the arrangement not to continue into the next week.

There have been no major breakthroughs in his recovery. At the start of practices, he hasn't worked out on the team rehab field since Aug. 27. He had an MRI on Aug. 28.

Gaither said he is not permitted to give specific details about the injury, which is continuing to evaluated.

He confirmed he has seen three specialists.

"We're still trying to figure out exactly the problem," Gaither said, "making sure that it's not going to be reoccurring, making sure that we nip it in the bud now. We're still trying to finalize, make sure it is what it is. That's where we're at."

The Chargers are disappointed with the pace of his recovery, and Gaither said that so is he.

"If my word is anything, trust me," Gaither said. "I'd rather not be in the training room. I'd rather be out there, fighting with my guys, getting ready to go up to Oakland and prepare to get the 'W.' Unfortunately, it's something I have to deal with. I'm definitely not happy about it. ... I just have to keep my head up and keep grinding."

It's been an up-and-down road for Gaither.

His college days at Maryland were cut short in 2007 when he became academically ineligible. He declared for the supplemental draft, where the Ravens drafted him in the fifth round.

Gaither was stout when on the field for the Ravens, starting 27 games in three seasons.

In 2010, he entered the final year of his contract. The team moved him from left to right tackle, a switch he opposed. He then missed most of minicamp with a foot injury. After working out independently from the team, he reported to training camp underweight and later suffered back spasms.

They were eventually diagnosed as having been caused by a thoracic disc injury. Ultimately, Gaither was placed on injured reserve.

There was reportedly disagreement between the Ravens and Gaither about his injury's severity.

Gaither asked Saturday what reason he'd have to fake being injured.

"Like, how would that help me?" Gaither said. "How would that possibly help me further my career? I have goals and things like that. I want to be a Pro Bowler. I want to be here for my team. How is faking an injury going to help me? ...

"It's just difficult. I'm just going to keep going. I'm not the kind of person that's going to battle words or anybody if they put that out about me. The only thing is to keep improving and doing what I'm doing."

Rookie Michael Harris will start for Gaither in Oakland.

The team may address its veteran tackle depth in the days afterward. If a veteran was signed before the Chargers' first game, his salary would have been guaranteed for the season.

Shopping in September is not the situation the Chargers envisioned when they signed Gaither to a four-year, $24.5 million contract in March with an $8 million signing and $13.5 million virtually guaranteed

"It's been difficult," Gaither said. "Nobody wants to be out for six weeks. Believe me. Like I said, it's not fun sitting in that training room while everybody else is working. It's just tough. That's injuries. Injuries are not fun. They never have been fun. Nobody will ever tell you that they are fun or easy to get through. ...

"It's something that you can't hang your head down. Keep grinding, and that's basically all I've been doing every day, coming here early in the morning, getting treatment. I'm just in a tough position. I got injured, and now I have to deal with it. I have to fight through it."